U.S. patent number 9,985,337 [Application Number 15/346,505] was granted by the patent office on 2018-05-29 for mobile terminal.
This patent grant is currently assigned to LG ELECTRONICS INC.. The grantee listed for this patent is LG ELECTRONICS INC.. Invention is credited to Sungjoon Hong, Byungwoon Jung, Kangjae Jung, Yunmo Kang, Sungjung Rho.
United States Patent |
9,985,337 |
Kang , et al. |
May 29, 2018 |
Mobile terminal
Abstract
A mobile terminal comprises: a terminal body; and a first
antenna device and a second antenna device disposed at one side of
the terminal body in an adjacent manner, and formed to operate at
different frequency bands, wherein the first antenna device and the
second antenna device are provided with conductive members each
having a slit at one side thereof, and wherein the conductive
members form part of an appearance of the terminal body.
Inventors: |
Kang; Yunmo (Seoul,
KR), Jung; Kangjae (Seoul, KR), Hong;
Sungjoon (Seoul, KR), Jung; Byungwoon (Seoul,
KR), Rho; Sungjung (Seoul, KR) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
LG ELECTRONICS INC. |
Seoul |
N/A |
KR |
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Assignee: |
LG ELECTRONICS INC. (Seoul,
KR)
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Family
ID: |
50273922 |
Appl.
No.: |
15/346,505 |
Filed: |
November 8, 2016 |
Prior Publication Data
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Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
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US 20170054200 A1 |
Feb 23, 2017 |
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Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
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14010900 |
Aug 27, 2013 |
9871286 |
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Foreign Application Priority Data
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Sep 19, 2012 [KR] |
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10-2012-0104152 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01Q
1/48 (20130101); H01Q 9/26 (20130101); H01Q
1/38 (20130101); H01Q 5/50 (20150115); H01Q
1/50 (20130101); H01Q 1/243 (20130101); H01Q
7/00 (20130101); H01Q 5/35 (20150115); H01Q
21/30 (20130101); H01Q 13/10 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
H01Q
1/24 (20060101); H01Q 1/48 (20060101); H01Q
1/38 (20060101); H01Q 5/50 (20150101); H01Q
5/35 (20150101); H01Q 13/10 (20060101); H01Q
9/26 (20060101); H01Q 21/30 (20060101); H01Q
1/50 (20060101); H01Q 7/00 (20060101) |
Field of
Search: |
;343/702,718,700MS,872 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Levi; Dameon E
Assistant Examiner: Dawkins; Collin
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Lee, Hong, Degerman, Kang &
Waimey PC
Parent Case Text
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.
No. 14/010,900, filed on Aug. 27, 2013, now U.S. Pat. No.
9,871,286, which claims the benefit of earlier filing date and
right of priority to Korean Application No. 10-2012-0104152, filed
on Sep. 19, 2012, the contents of which are all hereby incorporated
by reference herein in their entirety.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A mobile terminal, comprising: a case comprising a front side, a
rear side, and a plurality of lateral sides, wherein the case forms
an appearance of the mobile terminal and includes a conductive
material and the plurality of lateral sides comprises a first
plurality of lateral sides having a first length and a second
plurality of lateral sides having a second length shorter than the
first length; a first antenna device comprising a first conductive
member configured to transmit and receive radio frequency signals
in a first frequency band; a second antenna device comprising a
second conductive member configured to transmit and receive radio
frequency signals in a second frequency band different from the
first frequency band; a first feeding portion configured to feed
the first antenna device; and a second feeding portion configured
to feed the second antenna device; a first feeding extension
portion disposed between the first feeding portion and the first
conductive member; a conductive member disposed between the second
feeding portion and the second conductive member; a first slit and
a second slit disposed at one of the second plurality of lateral
sides, wherein the first conductive member and the second
conductive member are disposed at one of the second plurality of
lateral sides and form a part of an appearance of the mobile
terminal, wherein the second slit is disposed between the first
conductive member and the second conductive member, and wherein the
one of the second plurality of lateral sides corresponds to a
bottom lateral side of the mobile terminal.
2. The mobile terminal of claim 1, further comprising: a circuit
board comprising at least one transceiving circuit configured to
transmit and receive radio frequency signals; a first coaxial cable
which electrically connects the circuit board and the first antenna
device; a second coaxial cable which electrically connects the
circuit board and the second antenna device, wherein the at least
one transceiving circuit is configured to simultaneously feed the
first antenna device and the second antenna device to
simultaneously transmit radio frequency signals in the first and
the second frequency bands, and wherein the first and second
frequency bands are LTE-type signals.
3. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein: the first conductive
member is disposed between the first slit and the second slit; and
the first antenna device further comprises a third conductive
member, wherein a slot is defined between the third conductive
member and the first conductive member.
4. The mobile terminal of claim 3, wherein the conductive member is
configured to form a conductive loop with the second conductive
member and the second antenna device further comprises a grounding
connector configured to ground-connect the conductive loop.
5. The mobile terminal of claim 4, wherein the conductive member is
electrically connected with the second conductive member.
6. The mobile terminal of claim 3, further comprising: a flexible
printed circuit board (FPCB) comprising the third conductive member
and electrically connected to the circuit board; wherein the first
conductive member is adjacent to the FPCB, and the first conductive
member is electrically connected with the third conductive member
via the first feeding extension portion.
7. The mobile terminal of claim 6, wherein the one of the second
plurality of lateral sides comprises an opening for a socket.
8. The mobile terminal of claim 7, wherein the socket extends
between the first conductive member and the FPCB and is configured
to ground-connect the first conductive member to the FPCB.
9. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein main radiation of the
first and second antenna devices are respectively performed in the
first and second slits.
10. The mobile terminal of claim 1, further comprising a carrier
coupled to the first antenna device and the second antenna device,
wherein the carrier comprises conductive patterns on a surface of
the carrier.
11. The mobile terminal of claim 1, further comprising
non-conductive members within the first and second slits.
12. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the first feeding
extension portion is connected with the first conductive member at
a predetermined position which defines a dividing point of the
first conductive member into a long portion and a short
portion.
13. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the first antenna
device is configured to operate as a slot antenna and the second
antenna device is configured to operate as a loop antenna.
14. The mobile terminal of claim 1, further comprising: at least
one transceiving circuit configured to simultaneously feed the
first antenna device and the second antenna device to
simultaneously transmit radio frequency signals in the first and
the second frequency bands, and wherein the first and second
frequency bands are LTE-type signals.
15. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the case corresponds to
a first case and the mobile terminal further comprises a second
case disposed at the rear side of the first case.
16. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein another of the second
plurality of lateral sides corresponds to a top lateral side of the
mobile terminal.
17. A mobile terminal, comprising: a case comprising a front side,
a rear side, and a plurality of lateral sides, wherein the case
forms an appearance of the mobile terminal and includes a
conductive material and the plurality of lateral sides comprises a
first plurality of lateral sides having a first length and a second
plurality of lateral sides having a second length shorter than the
first length; a first antenna device comprising a first conductive
member configured to transmit and receive radio frequency signals
in a first frequency band; a second antenna device comprising a
second conductive member configured to transmit and receive radio
frequency signals in a second frequency band different from the
first frequency band; a first feeding portion configured to feed
the first antenna device; a second feeding portion configured to
feed the second antenna device; a first feeding extension portion
disposed between the first feeding portion and the first conductive
member; a conductive member disposed between the second feeding
portion and the second conductive member; and a first slit and a
second slit disposed at one of the second plurality of lateral
sides, wherein the first conductive member and the second
conductive member are disposed at one of the second plurality of
lateral sides and form a part of an appearance of the mobile
terminal, wherein the first conductive member is disposed between
the first slit and the second slit, wherein the one of the second
plurality lateral sides corresponds to a bottom lateral side of the
mobile terminal, wherein the second slit is disposed between the
first conductive member and the second conductive member, and
wherein main radiation of the first antenna device is performed via
the first slit and main radiation of the second antenna device is
performed via the second slit, and the first slit and the second
slit are positioned apart to reduce interference between the main
radiation of the first antenna device and the main radiation of the
second antenna device.
18. The mobile terminal of claim 17, further comprising: a circuit
board; a first coaxial cable which electrically connects the
circuit board and the first antenna device; and a second coaxial
cable which electrically connects the circuit board and the second
antenna device, wherein the first feeding portion is connected to
an end of the first coaxial cable, and wherein the second feeding
portion is connected to an end of the second coaxial cable.
19. The mobile terminal of claim 18, wherein at least one
transceiving circuit is configured to simultaneously feed the first
antenna device and the second antenna device to simultaneously
transmit radio frequency signals in the first and the second
frequency bands, and wherein the first and second frequency bands
are LTE-type signals.
20. The mobile terminal of claim 17, wherein another of the second
plurality lateral sides corresponds to a top lateral side of the
mobile terminal.
21. The mobile terminal of claim 17, wherein a direction of the
main radiation of the first antenna device and a direction of the
main radiation of the second antenna device extend externally from
the bottom lateral side.
22. The mobile terminal of claim 17, wherein the conductive member
is configured to form a conductive loop with the second conductive
member.
23. A mobile terminal, comprising: a case comprising a front side,
a rear side, and a plurality of lateral sides, wherein the case
forms an appearance of the mobile terminal and includes a
conductive material and the plurality of lateral sides comprises a
first plurality of lateral sides having a first length and a second
plurality of lateral sides having a second length wherein the first
length is greater than the second length; a window disposed at the
front side of the case; a display disposed below the window; a
first antenna device comprising a first conductive member
configured to transmit and receive radio frequency signals in a
first frequency band; a second antenna device comprising a second
conductive member configured to transmit and receive radio
frequency signals in a second frequency band different from the
first frequency band; a third conductive member, wherein a slot is
defined between the third conductive member and the first
conductive member; a circuit board comprising at least one
transceiving circuit; a first coaxial cable which electrically
connects the circuit board and the first antenna device; a second
coaxial cable which electrically connects the circuit board and the
second antenna device; a first feeding portion configured to feed
the first antenna device and connected to an end of the first
coaxial cable; a first feeding extension portion disposed between
the first feeding portion and the first conductive member; a second
feeding portion configured to feed the second antenna device; a
conductive member disposed between the second feeding portion and
the second conductive member; and a first slit and a second slit
disposed at one of the second plurality of lateral sides disposed
at an upper portion or a lower portion of the mobile terminal,
wherein the first conductive member and the second conductive
member are disposed at the one of the second plurality of lateral
sides and form a part of an appearance of the mobile terminal,
wherein the first conductive member is disposed between the first
slit and the second slit and the second slit is disposed between
the first conductive member and the second conductive member,
wherein the at least one transceiving circuit is configured to
simultaneously feed the first antenna device and the second antenna
device to simultaneously transmit radio frequency signals in the
first and the second frequency bands, and wherein main radiation of
the first antenna device is performed via the first slit and main
radiation of the second antenna device is performed via the second
slit, and the first slit and the second slit are positioned apart
to reduce interference between the main radiation of the first
antenna device and the main radiation of the second antenna
device.
24. The mobile terminal of claim 23, wherein the one of the second
plurality lateral sides corresponds to a bottom lateral side of the
mobile terminal.
25. The mobile terminal of claim 24, wherein a direction of the
main radiation of the first antenna device and a direction of the
main radiation of the second antenna device extend externally from
the bottom lateral side.
26. The mobile terminal of claim 23, wherein the conductive member
is configured to form a conductive loop with the second conductive
member.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE
1. Field of the Disclosure
The present invention relates to a mobile terminal, and
particularly, to a mobile terminal having an antenna device capable
of transmitting and receiving (transceiving) radio signals.
2. Background of the Disclosure
A mobile terminal is a portable electronic device that can be
carried anywhere and have at least one function of performing voice
and video calls, inputting/outputting information, storing data,
etc.
As the mobile terminal becomes multifunctional, the mobile terminal
can be allowed to capture still images or moving images, play music
or video files, play games, receive broadcast, etc., so as to be
implemented as an integrated multimedia player.
Various attempts have been made to implement complicated functions
in such a multimedia device by means of hardware or software. For
instance, is being provided a user interface (UI) environment for
allowing a user to search for or select a function in easier and
more convenient manners.
Besides such attempts, a method for enhancing a function of
hardware may be considered. Such method includes structural changes
and improvements for allowing a user to conveniently use the mobile
terminal. As the structural changes and improvements, an antenna
capable of transmitting and receiving (transceiving) electric waves
may be considered.
An antenna is a device configured to transmit and receive
(transceive) radio electromagnetic waves for radio communications,
which is an absolutely-required component of the mobile terminal.
The mobile terminal is provided with various functions such as
WiBro and DMB, rather than a voice call. Therefore, the antenna
should implement bandwidths for satisfying such functions, and
should be designed to have a small size so as to be mounted in the
mobile terminal.
To meet such demand, antennas capable of implementing multi
frequency bands are being designed. However, the antennas have
complicated structures, and it is difficult to independently
control parameter values which determine antenna characteristics
such as the resonant frequency, the bandwidth and the gain. In
order to solve such problems, research on an antenna having a new
structure is actively ongoing.
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
Therefore, an aspect of the detailed description is to provide a
mobile terminal having an antenna device capable of transceiving
radio electromagnetic wave in a multi frequency band.
Another aspect of the detailed description is to provide a mobile
terminal having an antenna device of more enhanced efficiency and a
smaller size.
To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the
purpose of this specification, as embodied and broadly described
herein, there is provided a mobile terminal, comprising: a terminal
body; and a first antenna device and a second antenna device
disposed at one side of the terminal body in an adjacent manner,
and formed to operate at different frequency bands, wherein the
first antenna device and the second antenna device are provided
with conductive members each having a slit at one side thereof, and
wherein the conductive members form part of an appearance of the
terminal body.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the
conductive members may comprise a first conductive member having a
first slit at one side thereof, and a second conductive member
having a second slit at one side thereof, wherein the first
conductive member may be included in the first antenna device and
the second conductive member may be included in the second antenna
device.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first
antenna device may comprise a third conductive member which forms a
slot together with the first conductive member, such that the slot
is communicated with the first slit; a first feeding portion which
forms an electric field in the slot such that the first antenna
device resonates in a first frequency band; and a first feeding
extension portion extending from the first feeding portion such
that the first antenna device resonates in a second frequency
band.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a length of
the slot, which is from a first connection part between the first
conductive member and the third conductive member, to the first
slit, may be .lamda./4 or .lamda./8 with respect to a wavelength of
a center frequency of the first frequency band.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the feeding
portion may be spaced from the first connection part by a first
distance, and the feeding extension portion may extend from the
feeding portion by a second distance.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first
distance may be formed such that an impedance of the center
frequency of the first frequency band is within 50 ohm by the
feeding portion, and the second distance is formed such that an
impedance of a center frequency of the second frequency band is
within 50 ohm by the feeding extension portion.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the third
conductive member may be implemented as a flexible printed circuit
board (FPCB) having a ground, and the FPCB having one end connected
to a circuit board mounted in the terminal body.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the second
antenna device may comprise a fourth conductive member which forms
a slot together with the second conductive member, such that the
slot is communicated with the second slit; a second feeding portion
which forms an electric field in the slot such that the second
antenna device resonates in a third frequency band; and a second
feeding extension portion extending from the second feeding portion
such that the second antenna device resonates in a fourth frequency
band.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a length of
the slot, which is from a second connection part between the second
conductive member and the fourth conductive member, to the second
slit, may be .lamda./4 or .lamda./8 with respect to a wavelength of
a center frequency of the third frequency band.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the fourth
conductive member may be implemented as a flexible printed circuit
board (FPCB) having a ground, and the FPCB having one end connected
to a circuit board mounted in the terminal body.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first
antenna device and the second antenna device may be disposed below
the terminal body, and a socket mounted in the terminal body and
connectable to an external device may be disposed between the first
conductive member and the second conductive member.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first
slit and the second slit may be formed to be open toward a lower
end of the terminal body.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first
antenna device may comprise a third member which forms a first
conductive loop together with the first conductive member; a first
feeding portion connected to the first conductive loop so as to
feed the first conductive loop; and a first grounding connector
connected to the first conductive loop so as to ground-connect the
first conductive loop.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a length of
the first conductive loop may be .lamda./2 or .lamda./4 with
respect to a wavelength of the center frequency of the first
frequency band, such that the first antenna device operates as a
folded dipole antenna.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the second
antenna device may comprise a fourth member which forms a second
conductive loop together with the second conductive member; a
second feeding portion connected to the second conductive loop so
as to feed the second conductive loop; and a second grounding
connector connected to the second conductive loop so as to
ground-connect the second conductive loop.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a length of
the second conductive loop may be .lamda./2 or .lamda./4 with
respect to a wavelength of the center frequency of the second
frequency band, such that the second antenna device operates as a
folded dipole antenna.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, one of the
antenna devices may operate as a slot antenna.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, one of the
antenna devices may operate as a folded dipole antenna.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure,
non-conductive members may be coupled to the slits so as to cover
the slits.
According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is
provided a mobile terminal, comprising: a conductive case which
forms an appearance of a terminal body; and a plurality of antenna
devices disposed at one side of the terminal body in an adjacent
manner, and formed to operate at different frequency bands, wherein
the antenna devices are provided with conductive members each
having a slit at one side thereof, and wherein the conductive
members are implemented as part of the conductive case.
The mobile terminal according to the present disclosure can have
the following advantages.
Firstly, as the mobile terminal scarcely has lowering of antenna
efficiency due to an electric device disposed at the periphery
thereof, the mobile terminal can be designed more freely.
Secondly, as the grounds of the antenna devices are independent
from each other and radio signals radiate in different directions,
the mobile terminal can reduce mutual coupling and an envelope
correction coefficient between the antenna devices.
Thirdly, as a main radiation section of the antenna is formed in a
lengthwise direction, toward outside from a lower end of the mobile
terminal, lowering of a radiation characteristic at a high
frequency band, due to a hand effect, can be reduced.
Further scope of applicability of the present application will
become more apparent from the detailed description given
hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed
description and specific examples, while indicating preferred
embodiments of the disclosure, are given by way of illustration
only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and
scope of the disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in
the art from the detailed description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further
understanding of the disclosure and are incorporated in and
constitute a part of this specification, illustrate exemplary
embodiments and together with the description serve to explain the
principles of the disclosure.
In the drawings:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal according to an
embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of a mobile terminal according
to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of the mobile terminal of FIG.
2;
FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. 3;
FIGS. 5A and 5B are conceptual views illustrating comparative
embodiments of an antenna device according to the present
disclosure,
FIG. 5C is a conceptual view of a slot antenna of an antenna device
according to the present disclosure;
FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a comparative embodiment of an
antenna device according to the present disclosure;
FIGS. 7A and 7B are conceptual views of a mobile terminal having
antenna devices according to a first embodiment of the present
disclosure;
FIG. 7C is a view illustrating a voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR)
according to a frequency of the antenna devices of FIG. 7A;
FIG. 8 is a view illustrating an embodiment of a case coupled to
part of the mobile terminal of FIG. 7A;
FIGS. 9A and 9B are views illustrating a modification embodiment of
FIG. 7B;
FIG. 10 is a view illustrating an example where antenna devices are
mounted to another position of a mobile terminal;
FIGS. 11A and 11B are conceptual views of a mobile terminal having
antenna devices according to a second embodiment of the present
disclosure;
FIG. 11C is a view illustrating a voltage standing wave ratio
(VSWR) according to a frequency of the antenna devices of FIG.
11A;
FIGS. 12A and 12B are views illustrating a modification embodiment
of FIG. 11B; and
FIG. 13 is a conceptual view of a mobile terminal according to
another embodiment of the present disclosure, in which one of a
plurality of antennas is implemented as a slot antenna and another
is implemented as a folded dipole antenna.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE
Description will now be given in detail of the exemplary
embodiments, with reference to the accompanying drawings. For the
sake of brief description with reference to the drawings, the same
or equivalent components will be provided with the same reference
numbers, and description thereof will not be repeated.
Hereinafter, a mobile terminal according to the present disclosure
will be explained in more detail with reference to the attached
drawings. The suffixes "module" and "unit or portion" for
components used in the following description merely provided only
for facilitation of preparing this specification, and thus they are
not granted a specific meaning or function. For the sake of brief
description with reference to the drawings, the same or equivalent
components will be provided with the same reference numbers, and
description thereof will not be repeated. Singular expressions
include plural expressions which do not have any obviously
different meaning in view of a context.
The mobile terminal according to the present disclosure may include
a portable phone, a smart phone, a laptop computer, a digital
broadcasting terminal, Personal Digital Assistants (PDA), Portable
Multimedia Player (PMP), a navigation system, etc. However, it will
be obvious to those skilled in the art that the present disclosure
may be also applicable to a fixed terminal such as a digital TV and
a desktop computer.
The mobile terminal 100 may comprise components, such as a wireless
communication unit 110, an Audio/Video (A/V) input unit 120, a user
input unit 130, a sensing unit 140, an output module 150, a memory
160, an interface unit 170, a controller 180, a power supply unit
190, and the like. FIG. 1 shows the mobile terminal 100 having
various components, but it is understood that implementing all of
the illustrated components is not a requirement. Greater or fewer
components may alternatively be implemented.
Hereinafter, each component is described in sequence.
The wireless communication unit 110 may typically include one or
more components which permit wireless communications between the
mobile terminal 100 and a wireless communication system or between
the mobile terminal 100 and a network within which the mobile
terminal 100 is located. For example, the wireless communication
unit 110 may include a broadcast receiving module 111, a mobile
communication module 112, a wireless internet module 113, a
short-range communication module 114, a position information module
115 and the like.
The broadcast receiving module 111 receives broadcast signals
and/or broadcast associated information from an external broadcast
management server (or other network entity) via a broadcast
channel.
The broadcast channel may include a satellite channel and/or a
terrestrial channel. The broadcast management server may be a
server that generates and transmits a broadcast signal and/or
broadcast associated information or a server that receives a
previously generated broadcast signal and/or broadcast associated
information and transmits the same to a terminal. The broadcast
associated information may refer to information associated with a
broadcast channel, a broadcast program or a broadcast service
provider. The broadcast signal may include a TV broadcast signal, a
radio broadcast signal, a data broadcast signal, and the like.
Also, the broadcast signal may further include a broadcast signal
combined with a TV or radio broadcast signal.
The broadcast associated information may also be provided via a
mobile communication network and, in this case, the broadcast
associated information may be received by the mobile communication
module 112.
The broadcast signal may exist in various forms. For example, it
may exist in the form of an electronic program guide (EPG) of
digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB), electronic service guide
(ESG) of digital video broadcast-handheld (DVB-H), and the
like.
The broadcast receiving module 111 may be configured to receive
signals broadcast by using various types of broadcast systems. In
particular, the broadcast receiving module 111 may receive a
digital broadcast by using a digital broadcast system such as
multimedia broadcasting-terrestrial (DMB-T), digital multimedia
broadcasting-satellite (DMB-S), digital video broadcast-handheld
(DVB-H), the data broadcasting system known as media forward link
only (MediaFLO.RTM.), integrated services digital
broadcast-terrestrial (ISDB-T), etc. The broadcast receiving module
111 may be configured to be suitable for every broadcast system
that provides a broadcast signal as well as the above-mentioned
digital broadcast systems.
Broadcasting signals and/or broadcasting associated information
received through the broadcast receiving module 111 may be stored
in the memory 160.
The mobile communication module 112 transmits/receives wireless
signals to/from at least one of network entities (e.g., base
station, an external terminal, a server, etc.) on a mobile
communication network. Here, the wireless signals may include audio
call signal, video call signal, or various formats of data
according to transmission/reception of text/multimedia
messages.
The wireless internet module 113 supports wireless Internet access
for the mobile terminal. This module may be internally or
externally coupled to the mobile terminal 100. Examples of such
wireless Internet access may include Wireless LAN (WLAN) (Wi-Fi),
Wireless Broadband (Wibro), World Interoperability for Microwave
Access (Wimax), High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), and the
like.
The short-range communication module 114 denotes a module for
short-range communications. Suitable technologies for implementing
this module may include BLUETOOTH, Radio Frequency IDentification
(RFID), Infrared Data Association (IrDA), Ultra-WideBand (UWB),
ZigBee, and the like.
The position information module 115 denotes a module for sensing or
calculating a position of a mobile terminal. An example of the
position information module 115 may include a Global Position
System (GPS) module.
Referring to FIG. 1, the AN input unit 120 is configured to receive
an audio or video signal. The A/V input unit 120 may include a
camera 121, a microphone 122 or the like. The camera 121 processes
image frames such as still images or moving images acquired by an
image sensor in a video call mode or an image capturing mode. The
processed image frames may be displayed on a display unit 151.
The image frames processed by the camera 121 may be stored in the
memory 160 or transmitted to the outside via the wireless
communication unit 110. Two or more cameras 121 may be provided
according to the configuration of the mobile terminal.
The microphone 122 may receive sounds (audible data) via a
microphone in a phone call mode, a recording mode, a voice
recognition mode, and the like, and can process such sounds into
audio data. The processed audio (voice) data may be converted for
output into a format transmittable to a mobile communication base
station via the mobile communication module 112 in case of the
phone call mode. The microphone 122 may implement various types of
noise canceling (or suppression) algorithms to cancel (or suppress)
noise or interference generated while receiving and transmitting
audio signals.
The user input unit 130 may generate input data for allowing a user
to control various operations of the mobile communication terminal.
The user input unit 130 may include a keypad, a dome switch, a
touch pad (e.g., a touch sensitive member that detects changes in
resistance, pressure, capacitance, etc. due to being contacted) a
jog wheel, a jog switch, and the like.
The sensing unit 140 detects a current status (or state) of the
mobile terminal 100 such as an opened or closed state of the mobile
terminal 100, a location of the mobile terminal 100, the presence
or absence of user contact with the mobile terminal 100 (e.g.,
touch inputs), the orientation of the mobile terminal 100, an
acceleration or deceleration movement and direction of the mobile
terminal 100, etc., and generates commands or signals for
controlling the operation of the mobile terminal 100. For example,
when the mobile terminal 100 is implemented as a slide type mobile
phone, the sensing unit 140 may sense whether the slide phone is
open or closed. In addition, the sensing unit 140 can detect
whether or not the power supply unit 190 supplies power or whether
or not the interface unit 170 is coupled with an external device.
The sensing unit 140 may include a proximity sensor 141.
The output unit 150 is configured to provide outputs in a visual,
audible, and/or tactile manner. The output unit 150 may include the
display unit 151, an audio output module 152, an alarm unit 153, a
haptic module 154, and the like.
The display unit 151 may display information processed in the
mobile terminal 100. For example, when the mobile terminal 100 is
in a phone call mode, the display unit 151 may display a User
Interface (UI) or a Graphic User Interface (GUI) associated with a
call. When the mobile terminal 100 is in a video call mode or image
capturing mode, the display unit 151 may display a captured image
and/or received image, or a UI or GUI.
The display unit 151 may include at least one of a Liquid Crystal
Display (LCD), a Thin Film Transistor-LCD (TFT-LCD), an Organic
Light Emitting Diode (OLED) display, a flexible display, a
three-dimensional (3D) display, or the like.
Some of these displays may be configured to be transparent so that
outside may be seen therethrough, which may be referred to as a
transparent display. A representative example of the transparent
display may include a Transparent Organic Light Emitting Diode
(TOLED), and the like. The rear surface portion of the display unit
151 may also be implemented to be optically transparent. Under such
configuration, a user can view an object positioned at a rear side
of a body through a region occupied by the display unit 151 of the
body.
The display unit 151 may be implemented in two or more in number
according to a configured aspect of the mobile terminal 100. For
instance, a plurality of displays may be arranged on one surface
integrally or separately, or may be arranged on different
surfaces.
Here, if the display unit 151 and a touch sensitive sensor
(referred to as a touch sensor) have a layered structure
therebetween, the structure may be referred to as a touch screen.
The display unit 151 may be used as an input device rather than an
output device. The touch sensor may be implemented as a touch film,
a touch sheet, a touch pad, and the like.
The touch sensor may be configured to convert changes of a pressure
applied to a specific part of the display unit 151, or capacitance
occurring from a specific part of the display unit 151, into
electric input signals. Also, the touch sensor may be configured to
sense not only a touched position and a touched area, but also a
touch pressure.
When touch inputs are sensed by the touch sensors, corresponding
signals are transmitted to a touch controller (not shown). The
touch controller processes the received signals, and then transmits
corresponding data to the controller 180. Accordingly, the
controller 180 may sense which region of the display unit 151 has
been touched.
Referring to FIG. 1, a proximity sensor 141 may be arranged at an
inner region of the mobile terminal blocked by the touch screen, or
near the touch screen. The proximity sensor 141 indicates a sensor
to sense presence or absence of an object approaching to a surface
to be sensed, or an object disposed near a surface to be sensed, by
using an electromagnetic field or infrared rays without a
mechanical contact. The proximity sensor 141 has a longer lifespan
and a more enhanced utility than a contact sensor.
The proximity sensor 141 may include a transmissive type
photoelectric sensor, a direct reflective type photoelectric
sensor, a mirror reflective type photoelectric sensor, a
high-frequency oscillation proximity sensor, capacitance type
proximity sensor, a magnetic type proximity sensor, an infrared
rays proximity sensor, and so on. When the touch screen is
implemented as capacitance type, proximity of a pointer to the
touch screen is sensed by changes of an electromagnetic field. In
this case, the touch screen (touch sensor) may be categorized into
a proximity sensor.
Hereinafter, for the sake of brief explanation, a status that the
pointer is positioned to be proximate onto the touch screen without
contact will be referred to as `proximity touch`, whereas a status
that the pointer substantially comes in contact with the touch
screen will be referred to as `contact touch`. For the position
corresponding to the proximity touch of the pointer on the touch
screen, such position corresponds to a position where the pointer
faces perpendicular to the touch screen upon the proximity touch of
the pointer.
The proximity sensor 141 senses proximity touch, and proximity
touch patterns (e.g., distance, direction, speed, time, position,
moving status, etc.). Information relating to the sensed proximity
touch and the sensed proximity touch patterns may be output onto
the touch screen.
The audio output module 152 may convert and output as sound audio
data received from the wireless communication unit 110 or stored in
the memory 160 in a call signal reception mode, a call mode, a
record mode, a voice recognition mode, a broadcast reception mode,
and the like. Also, the audio output module 152 may provide audible
outputs related to a particular function performed by the mobile
terminal 100 (e.g., a call signal reception sound, a message
reception sound, etc.). The audio output module 152 may include a
speaker, a buzzer, and so on.
The alarm unit 153 may provide outputs to inform about the
occurrence of an event of the mobile terminal 100. Typical events
may include call reception, message reception, key signal inputs, a
touch input, etc. In addition to audio or video outputs, the alarm
unit 153 may provide outputs in a different manner to inform about
the occurrence of an event. The video signal or the audio signal
may be output via the display unit 151 or the audio output module
152. Accordingly, the display unit 151 or the audio output module
152 may be classified as part of the alarm unit 153.
The haptic module 154 generates various tactile effects which a
user can feel. A representative example of the tactile effects
generated by the haptic module 154 includes vibration. Vibration
generated by the haptic module 154 may have a controllable
intensity, a controllable pattern, and so on. For instance,
different vibration may be output in a synthesized manner or in a
sequential manner.
The haptic module 154 may generate various tactile effects,
including not only vibration, but also arrangement of pins
vertically moving with respect to a skin being touched (contacted),
air injection force or air suction force through an injection hole
or a suction hole, touch by a skin surface, presence or absence of
contact with an electrode, effects by stimulus such as an
electrostatic force, reproduction of cold or hot feeling using a
heat absorbing device or a heat emitting device, and the like.
The haptic module 154 may be configured to transmit tactile effects
(signals) through a user's direct contact, or a user's muscular
sense using a finger or a hand. The haptic module 154 may be
implemented in two or more in number according to the configuration
of the mobile terminal 100.
The memory 160 may store a program for the processing and control
of the controller 180. Alternatively, the memory 160 may
temporarily store input/output data (e.g., phonebook data,
messages, still images, video and the like). Also, the memory 160
may store data relating to various patterns of vibrations and audio
output upon the touch input on the touch screen.
The memory 160 may be implemented using any type of suitable
storage medium including a flash memory type, a hard disk type, a
multimedia card micro type, a memory card type (e.g., SD or DX
memory), Random Access Memory (RAM), Static Random Access Memory
(SRAM), Read-Only Memory (ROM), Electrically Erasable Programmable
Read-only Memory (EEPROM), Programmable Read-only Memory (PROM),
magnetic memory, magnetic disk, optical disk, and the like. Also,
the mobile terminal 100 may operate a web storage which performs
the storage function of the memory 160 on the Internet.
The interface unit 170 may generally be implemented to interface
the mobile terminal with external devices. The interface unit 170
may allow a data reception from an external device, a power
delivery to each component in the mobile terminal 100, or a data
transmission from the mobile terminal 100 to an external device.
The interface unit 170 may include, for example, wired/wireless
headset ports, external charger ports, wired/wireless data ports,
memory card ports, ports for coupling devices having an
identification module, audio Input/Output (I/O) ports, video I/O
ports, earphone ports, and the like.
The identification module may be configured as a chip for storing
various information required to authenticate an authority to use
the mobile terminal 100, which may include a User Identity Module
(UIM), a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM), a Universal Subscriber
Identity Module (USIM), and the like. Also, the device having the
identification module (hereinafter, referred to as `identification
device`) may be implemented in a type of smart card. Hence, the
identification device can be coupled to the mobile terminal 100 via
a port.
Also, the interface unit 170 may serve as a path for power to be
supplied from an external cradle to the mobile terminal 100 when
the mobile terminal 100 is connected to the external cradle or as a
path for transferring various command signals inputted from the
cradle by a user to the mobile terminal 100. Such various command
signals or power inputted from the cradle may operate as signals
for recognizing that the mobile terminal 100 has accurately been
mounted to the cradle.
The controller 180 typically controls the overall operations of the
mobile terminal 100. For example, the controller 180 performs the
control and processing associated with telephony calls, data
communications, video calls, and the like. The controller 180 may
include a multimedia module 181 which provides multimedia playback.
The multimedia module 181 may be configured as part of the
controller 180 or as a separate component.
The controller 180 can perform a pattern recognition processing so
as to recognize writing or drawing input on the touch screen as
text or image.
The power supply unit 190 serves to supply power to each component
by receiving external power or internal power under control of the
controller 180.
Various embodiments described herein may be implemented in a
computer-readable medium using, for example, software, hardware, or
some combination thereof.
For a hardware implementation, the embodiments described herein may
be implemented within one or more of Application Specific
Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Digital Signal Processors (DSPs),
Digital Signal Processing Devices (DSPDs), Programmable Logic
Devices (PLDs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), processors,
controllers, micro-controllers, micro processors, other electronic
units designed to perform the functions described herein, or a
selective combination thereof. In some cases, such embodiments are
implemented by the controller 180.
For software implementation, the embodiments such as procedures and
functions may be implemented together with separate software
modules each of which performs at least one of functions and
operations. The software codes can be implemented with a software
application written in any suitable programming language. Also, the
software codes may be stored in the memory 160 and executed by the
controller 180.
FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of a mobile terminal according
to the present disclosure, and FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of
the mobile terminal of FIG. 2.
Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the mobile terminal 200 according to
the present disclosure is provided with a bar type terminal body
204. However, the present disclosure is not limited to this, but
may be applied to a slide type in which two or more bodies are
coupled to each other so as to perform a relative motion, a folder
type, a swing type, and the like. Further, the mobile terminal of
the present disclosure may be applied to any portable electronic
device having a camera and a flash, for instance, a portable phone,
a smart phone, a notebook computer, a digital broadcasting
terminal, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), Portable Multimedia
Players (PMO), etc.
The mobile terminal 200 includes a terminal body 204 which forms
the appearance thereof.
A case (casing, housing, cover, etc.) which forms the appearance of
the terminal body 204 may include a front case 201, a rear case
202, and a battery cover 203 for covering the rear surface of the
rear case 202.
A space formed by the front case 201 and the rear case 202 may
accommodate various components therein. Such cases may be formed by
injection-molded synthetic resin, or may be formed using a metallic
material such as stainless steel (STS) or titanium (Ti).
On the front surface of the terminal body 204, may be disposed a
display unit 210, a first audio output unit 211, a front camera
216, a side key 214, an interface unit 215, and a user input unit
217.
The display unit 210 includes a liquid crystal display (LCD)
module, organic light emitting diodes (OLED) module, e-paper, etc.,
each for visually displaying information. The display unit 210 may
include a touch sensing means for inputting information in a touch
manner. Hereinafter, the display unit 210 including the touch
sensing means is called `touch screen`. Once part on the touch
screen 210 is touched, content corresponding to the touched
position is input. The content input in a touch manner, may be
characters, or numbers, or menu items which can be set in each
mode. The touch sensing means may be transmissive so that the
display can be viewed, and may include a structure for enhancing
visibility of the touch screen at a bright place. Referring to FIG.
2, the touch screen 210 occupies most of the front surface of the
front case 201.
The first audio output unit 211 may be implemented as a receiver
for transmitting a call sound to a user's ear, or a loud speaker
for outputting each type of alarm sound or a playback sound of
multimedia.
The front camera 216 processes image frames such as still images or
moving images, acquired by an image sensor in a video call mode or
a capturing mode. The processed image frames may be displayed on
the display unit 210.
The image frames processed by the front camera 216 may be stored in
the memory 160, or may be transmitted to the outside through the
wireless communication unit 110. The front camera 216 may be
implemented in two or more according to a user's interface.
The user input unit 217 is manipulated to receive a command for
controlling the operation of the mobile terminal 200, and may
include a plurality of input keys. The input keys may be referred
to as manipulation portions, and may include any type of ones that
can be manipulated in a user's tactile manner.
For instance, the user input unit 217 may be implemented as a dome
switch, or a touch screen, or a touch pad for inputting commands or
information in a user's push or touch manner. Alternatively, the
user input unit 217 may be implemented, for example, as a wheel for
rotating a key, a jog, or a joystick. The user input unit 217 is
configured to input various commands such as START, END and
SCROLL.
A side key 214, an interface unit 215, an audio input unit 213,
etc. are disposed on the side surface of the front case 201.
The side key 214 may be called `manipulation unit`, and may be
configured to receive commands for controlling the operation of the
mobile terminal 200. The side key 214 may include any type of ones
that can be manipulated in a user's tactile manner. Content input
by the side key 214 may be variously set. For instance, through the
side key 214, may be input commands such as controlling the front
and rear cameras 216 and 221, controlling the level of sound output
from the audio output unit 211, and converting a current mode of
the display unit 210 into a touch recognition mode.
The audio output unit 213 may be implemented as a microphone for
receiving a user's voice, other sound, etc.
The interface unit 215 serves a path through which the mobile
terminal 200 performs data exchange, etc. with an external device.
For example, the interface unit 215 may be at least one of a
connection terminal through which the mobile terminal 200 is
connected to an ear phone by cable or radio, a port for local area
communication, e.g., an infrared data association (IrDA) port, a
Bluetooth portion, a wireless LAN port, and power supply terminals
for supplying power to the mobile terminal 200. The interface unit
215 may be a card socket for accommodating an external card such as
a subscriber identification module (SIM) card, a user identity
module (UIM) card or a memory card for storing information.
A power supply unit 240 and the rear camera 221 are disposed on the
rear surface of the body 204.
A flash 222 and a mirror (not shown) may be disposed close to the
rear camera 221. When capturing an object by using the rear camera
221, the flash 222 provides light onto the object.
When the user captures an image of himself/herself by using the
rear camera 221, the mirror can be used for the user to look at
himself/herself therein.
The rear camera 221 may face a direction which is opposite to a
direction faced by the front camera 216, and may have different
pixels from those of the front camera 216.
For example, the front camera 216 may operate with relatively lower
pixels (lower resolution). Thus, the front camera 216 may be useful
when a user can capture his face and send it to another party
during a video call or the like. On the other hand, the rear camera
221 may operate with a relatively higher pixels (higher resolution)
such that it can be useful for a user to obtain higher quality
pictures for later use. The front camera 216 and the rear camera
221 may be installed at the terminal body 204 so as to rotate or
pop-up.
The power supply unit 240 is configured to supply power to the
mobile terminal 200. The power supply unit 240 may be mounted in
the terminal body 204, or may be detachably mounted to the terminal
body 204.
FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the mobile terminal of
FIG. 3.
Referring to FIG. 4, the mobile terminal includes a window 210a and
a display module 210b which constitute the display unit 210. The
window 210a may be coupled to one surface of the front case
201.
A frame 241 is formed between the front case 201 and the rear case
202 so as to support electric devices. The frame 241, a structure
for supporting inside of the mobile terminal, is formed so as to
support at least one of the display module 210b, the camera module
221, the antenna device, the battery 240 and a circuit board
250.
Part of the frame 241 may be exposed to outside of the mobile
terminal. The frame 241 may constitute part of a sliding module for
connecting a body part with a display part in a slide type mobile
terminal rather than a bar type mobile terminal.
Referring to FIG. 4, the circuit board 250 is disposed between the
frame 241 and the rear case 202, and the display module 210b is
coupled to one surface of the frame 241. The circuit board 250 and
the battery may be disposed on another surface of the frame 241, a
battery case 203 for covering the battery may be coupled to the
rear case 202.
The window 210a is coupled to one surface of the front case 201. A
touch sensor (nor shown) may be mounted to the window 210a. The
touch sensor is configured to sense a touch input, and is formed of
a transmissive material. The touch sensor may be mounted to the
front surface of the window 210a, and may be configured to convert
a change of a voltage, etc. occurring on a specific part of the
window 210a, into an electric input signal.
The display module 210b is mounted to the rear surface of the
window 210a. In this embodiment, the display module 210b is
implemented as a thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT
LCD). However, the present disclosure is not limited to this.
For instance, the display module 210b may be implemented as a
liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light-emitting diode
(OLED), a flexible display, a 3D display, etc.
As aforementioned, the circuit board 250 may be formed on one
surface of the frame 241, but may be mounted below the display
module 210b. At least one electronic device is mounted onto the
lower surface of the circuit board 250.
A battery accommodation portion for accommodating the battery 240
therein is recessed from the frame 241. A contact terminal
connected to the circuit board 250 may be formed on one side
surface of the battery, so that the battery 240 can supply power to
the terminal body.
An antenna device may be formed on an upper end or a lower end of
the mobile terminal. The antenna device may be formed in plurality
in number, and the plurality of antenna devices may be disposed at
the respective ends. The antenna devices may be configured to
transmit and receive radio signals in different frequency
bands.
The frame 241 may be formed of a metallic material so as to have a
sufficient strength even in a small thickness. The frame 241 formed
of a metallic material may operate as a ground. That is, the
circuit board 250 or the antenna device may be ground-connected to
the frame 241, and the frame 241 may operate as a ground of the
circuit board 250 or the antenna device. In this case, the frame
241 may extend a ground of the mobile terminal.
The circuit board 250 is electrically connected to the antenna
device, and is configured to process radio signals (or radio
electromagnetic waves) transmitted and received by the antenna
device. For processing of radio signals, a plurality of
transceiving circuits may be mounted to the circuit board 250.
The transceiving circuits may include one or more integrated
circuits and related electric devices. As an example, the
transceiving circuits may include a transmission integrated
circuit, a reception integrated circuit, a switching circuit, an
amplifier, etc.
As the plurality of transceiving circuits simultaneously feed
conductive members formed in conductive patterns, a plurality of
antenna devices may simultaneously operate. For instance, while one
of the transceiving circuits performs signal transmission, another
may perform signal reception. Alternatively, both of the
transceiving circuits may perform signal transmission or signal
reception.
Coaxial cables 252 and 253 may be formed to connect the circuit
board 250 with the antenna devices. For instance, the coaxial
cables 251 and 252 may be connected to feeding devices for feeding
the antenna devices. The feeding devices may be formed on one
surface of a flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) 242 for
processing signals input from the user input unit 217. Another
surface of the FPCB 242 may be coupled to a signal transmission
unit 217a for transmitting signals of the user input unit 217. In
this case, a dome may be formed on another surface of the FPCB 242,
and an actuator may be formed at the signal transmission unit
217a.
FIGS. 5A and 5B are conceptual views illustrating comparative
embodiments of an antenna device according to the present
disclosure, and FIG. 5C is a conceptual view of a slot antenna of
an antenna device according to the present disclosure.
One of the antenna devices according to comparative embodiments is
transformed from a slot antenna, which is configured to transceive
radio signals while resonating in a plurality of frequency bands.
Generally, a slot antenna has a structure that a slot is formed on
a wall surface of a wave guide, a surface of a cylindrical
conductor, or a planar conductor plate, and the slot is fed so that
an electric field can be formed in the slot. Under such
configuration, the slot antenna operates as a radiator. Such
general slot antenna has been used to process radio signals in a
single frequency band, rather than in a plurality of frequency
bands. The reason will be explained with reference to FIGS. 5A and
5B.
FIGS. 5A and 5B are a first comparative embodiment and a second
comparative embodiment of the present disclosure, which show a slot
antenna 30 having one open side, respectively. The slot antenna 30
is configured to resonate in a low frequency band, with a shorter
slot length (D) than a slot antenna having two closed sides, due to
a mirror effect. That is, the slot antenna having one open side can
resonate in the same frequency band, with a length corresponding to
about 1/2 a length of a slot antenna having two closed sides.
In case of a slot antenna having two closed sides, a slot has a
length corresponding to .lamda./2 with respect to a wavelength of a
center frequency of a first frequency band, in order to radiate
radio waves in the first frequency band. In case of a slot antenna
having one open side, a slot has a length corresponding to
.lamda./4 with respect to a wavelength of a center frequency. That
is, the slot antenna having one open side can have a minimized
size, because it can radiate radio waves corresponding to radio
signals in a low frequency band, with a slot of a shorter
length.
FIG. 5A illustrates a relation between an impedance and a current
when the slot antenna 30 radiates radio waves in a first frequency
band. Here, the dotted line indicates the size of an impedance, and
the arrow indicates a current flowing along the slot.
A first member 31 and a second member 32 form a slot (S).
A length (D) of the slot (S) corresponds to .lamda./4 with respect
to a wavelength of a center frequency of a first frequency band. An
impedance of the antenna device, by which radio waves radiate, has
a value about 377 ohm, and impedance matching is performed at one
open side 35 of the slot. Since impedance matching of an antenna is
performed at about 50 ohm, a feeding portion 33 is spaced from one
closed side 34 by a prescribed distance (D1).
FIG. 5B illustrates an impedance and a current flow when radio
waves radiate in a second frequency band by the antenna of FIG. 5A.
The length (D) of the slot corresponds to .lamda./2 with respect to
a wavelength of a center frequency of a second frequency band. An
impedance of the antenna device where radio waves radiate has a
value about 377 ohm, and impedance matching is performed at a
central part of the slot in a lengthwise direction.
Unless the feeding portion 33 has a displacement, the position of
the feeding portion 33 in a first frequency band for impedance
matching, corresponds to a position where an impedance of about 300
ohm can be implemented in a second frequency band. On the contrary,
an impedance matching position in a second frequency band is spaced
from a closed part of the slot by a prescribed length (D2).
Accordingly, if the position of the feeding portion 33 is not
changed, it is difficult to perform impedance matching for allowing
the slot antenna to have efficiency more than a prescribed value in
a second frequency band.
That is, if the feeding portion 33 is positioned in a first
frequency band for impedance matching, it is difficult to perform
impedance matching in a second frequency band. Therefore, an
antenna performance satisfied in a second frequency band cannot be
obtained.
In order to solve such problem, there is provided an antenna device
according to an embodiment of the present disclosure as shown in
FIG. 5C. Referring to FIG. 5C, the antenna device is provided with
a feeding extension portion 36 extending from the feeding portion
33.
The feeding extension portion 36 extends from the feeding portion
33 so that an impedance can be about 50 ohm, in a case where the
slot antenna operates in a second frequency band. That is, the
feeding portion 33 is displaced at a position where an impedance is
50 ohm, in a case where the slot antenna operates in a first
frequency band. The feeding extension portion 36 extends from the
feeding portion 33 by a prescribed length (D3) so that an impedance
can be 50 ohm, in a case where the slot antenna operates in a
second frequency band.
The antenna device according to the present disclosure can have
impedance matching so that antenna efficiency more than a
prescribed value can be implemented in a plurality of frequency
bands, without using a balun or a diplexer.
The mobile terminal according to the following embodiments is
provided with a plurality of antenna devices at one side
thereof.
The antenna devices are configured to transceive signals in
different frequency bands.
For instance, a first antenna device (ANT 1) may be configured to
transceive DCN 1x type or PCS 1x type signals, and a second antenna
device (ANT 2) may be configured to transceiver DCN
EVDO(Evolution-Data Optimized or Evolution-Data Only) type
signals.
If the first antenna device (ANT 1) transceives LTE B4 type
signals, the second antenna device (ANT 2) may transceive LTE B13
type signals.
Alternatively, if the first antenna device (ANT 1) transceives
signals corresponding to voice service of the mobile terminal, the
second antenna device (ANT 2) may transceive data signals
corresponding to LTE service of the mobile terminal.
FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a comparative embodiment of an
antenna device according to the present disclosure. Especially,
FIG. 6 illustrates antenna devices formed at part `A` in the mobile
terminal shown in FIG. 3.
Referring to FIG. 6, each of a first antenna device (ANT 1) and a
second antenna device (ANT 2) is implemented as one of a monopole
type antenna, a dipole type antenna and a PFA type antenna. The
first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second antenna device (ANT 2)
may be disposed at one side of the mobile terminal in an adjacent
manner. Radiators of the first antenna device (ANT 1) and the
second antenna device (ANT 2) may be implemented as a carrier 245
and a conductive pattern formed on one surface of the carrier
245.
Since main radiation from the first antenna device (ANT 1) and the
second antenna device (ANT 2) is performed at one end of the
conductive pattern, the main radiation may be influenced by
peripheral electric devices where an electric field or a magnetic
field is generated. Therefore, the antenna devices should be spaced
from the electric devices (e.g., a socket, a display module or an
FPCB). In a case where the mobile terminal is provided therein with
the plurality of antenna devices (ANT 1 and ANT 2), the antenna
devices should be spaced from electric devices. This may cause an
inner space of the mobile terminal where the antenna devices can be
arranged, to be narrow. Further, if such space is not obtained, the
antenna devices may have a lowered performance. This may cause a
difficulty in miniaturizing the mobile terminal.
FIGS. 7A and 7B are conceptual views of a mobile terminal having
antenna devices according to a first embodiment of the present
disclosure, and FIG. 7C is a view illustrating a voltage standing
wave ratio (VSWR) according to a frequency of the antenna devices
of FIG. 7A. Especially, FIGS. 7A and 7B illustrate antenna devices
formed at part `A` in the mobile terminal shown in FIG. 3.
In FIGS. 7A and 7B, the first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second
antenna device (ANT 2) are implemented as the same type of antenna
devices. However, the first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second
antenna device (ANT 2) may be implemented as different types of
antenna devices.
The antenna devices according to a first embodiment are a sort of
slot antenna. As aforementioned, each of the antenna devices may
comprise members which form a slot, a feeding portion, and a
feeding extension portion.
Hereinafter, the first antenna device (ANT 1) will be explained as
an example. The first antenna device (ANT 1) may comprise a first
conductive member 311, a third conductive member 312, a first
feeding portion 313 and a first feeding extension portion 314. Each
of the first conductive member 311 and the third conductive member
312 may be configured as a conductive member, and the first
conductive member 311 and the third conductive member 312 define a
slot (S) of the antenna device. That is, a space between the first
conductive member 311 and the third conductive member 312 serves as
a slot (S) of the antenna device. An open part of the slot (S) is
called an opening 316. A closed part of the slot (S), due to
connection between the first conductive member 311 and the third
conductive member 312, is called a connector 317.
A length from the opening 316 to the connector 317 of the slot (S)
corresponds to .lamda./4 or .lamda./8 with respect to a wavelength
of a center frequency of a first frequency band. The length of the
slot (S) may be changed by an antenna feeding method, a dielectric
constant of a dielectric substance of the antenna, or addition of a
capacitor of the first feeding portion 313. For instance, in a case
where the antenna device operates in a .lamda./4 resonance mode due
to change of a feeding method, the length of the slot may
correspond to .lamda./4 with respect to a wavelength of a center
frequency. For a smaller size of the antenna device (ANT 1), the
slot (S) may be bent, or the slot (S) may have a meander
structure.
For instance, in case of a communication service bandwidth where a
first frequency band corresponds to GSM 850, the slot (S) is formed
to have a length of about 45.about.53 mm. In case of a
communication service bandwidth where a first frequency band
corresponds to LTE 700, the slot (S) is formed to have a length of
about 50.about.60 mm. The length of the slot is in inverse
proportion to the center frequency of the first frequency band.
That is, the higher the frequency is, the shorter the length of the
slot is. Considering efficiency of the antenna device, the width of
the slot (S) is required to be at least 0.003.lamda..
As aforementioned, the length of the slot (S) corresponds to
.lamda./4 with respect to a wavelength of a center frequency of a
first frequency band. However, the length of the slot (S) may be
shortened due to a matching portion 315 implemented as series
elements or shunt elements, which corresponds to .lamda./8 with
respect to a wavelength of the center frequency of the first
frequency band. The length of the slot (S) may be increased or
decreased by characteristics of components of the antenna device,
or by influences from peripheral electric devices of the antenna
device.
Each of the first conductive member 311 and the third conductive
member 312 has only to be formed of a conductive material. In this
embodiment, the first conductive member 311 is implemented as part
of a case 202a which covers one side of the mobile terminal, and
the third conductive member 312 is implemented as a flexible
printed circuit board (FPCB) 242 having a ground.
One end of the FPCB 242 according to the following embodiments may
be connected to the circuit board 250 having a controller. The FPCB
242 may be connected to the user input unit 217 of the mobile
terminal. In this case, the FPCB 242 is formed so that signals
generated from the user input unit 217 can be transmitted to the
controller of the circuit board 250. For instance, the FPCB 242 may
be formed below the user input unit 217 so as to be connected to
the user input unit 217. And the FPCB 242 may be formed to contact
the user input unit 217.
As the first conductive member 311 is implemented as the case which
forms the appearance of the terminal body, a slit communicated with
the opening 316 is formed at one side of the first conductive
member 311. Through the slit, main radiation from the slot antenna
may be performed.
The first feeding portion 313 feeds the slot antenna so that the
antenna device can resonate at a specific frequency. More
specifically, one end of the first feeding portion 313 may be
connected to one of the first conductive member 311 and the third
conductive member 312 which defines the slot (S), so that the first
feeding portion 313 can form an electric field in the slot (S).
Another end of the first feeding portion 313 may be connected to
the first feeding extension portion 314.
The first feeding portion 313 may feed the conductive members in a
connected manner, or may coupling-feed the conductive members.
According to a direct feeding method, the first feeding portion 313
extending from a coaxial cable 253 (refer to FIG. 4) may extend
from one member to another member so as to cross the slot (S). That
is, according to a direct feeding method, one end of the first
feeding portion 313 may be connected to one member, and another end
of the first feeding portion 313 may extend to be connected to the
first feeding extension portion 314.
According to a coupling feeding method, the first feeding portion
313 may perform coupling feeding with respect to one of the
conductive members, a neighboring member spaced from the first
feeding extension portion 314, or the first feeding extension
portion 314. The first feeding portion 313 may extend from the
third conductive member 312 toward the first conductive member 311.
According to a coupling feeding method, one end of the first
feeding portion 313 may be connected to the first feeding extension
portion 314, and another end of the first feeding portion 313 may
be spaced from the first conductive member 311.
As shown in FIG. 5C, the first feeding portion 313 is spaced from
the connector 317 by a prescribed distance, so that an impedance of
a center frequency of a first frequency band can be about 50 ohm by
the first feeding portion 313.
The first feeding extension portion 314 extends from the first
feeding portion 313 by a prescribed distance, so that an impedance
of a center frequency of a second frequency band can be within 50
ohm by the first feeding extension portion 314. The length of the
first feeding extension portion 314 may be properly controlled for
impedance matching so that the antenna device 300 can effectively
operate. Through tuning, the length of the first feeding extension
portion 314 may extend to a distance large enough for an impedance
of a center frequency of a second frequency band to be about 150
ohm.
A shunt element or a series element, which includes a capacitor or
an inductor for impedance matching, may be formed between the first
feeding portion 313 and the first feeding extension portion 314.
Part where the shunt element or the series element is formed, may
be called a matching portion 315.
The shunt element may control a resistance, a real number part of
an impedance. For instance, an inductor may be controlled to have a
high resistance, but a capacitor may be controlled to have a low
resistance to thus perform impedance matching. The shunt element
may be implemented as a lumped constant element between the first
feeding portion 313 and the first feeding extension portion
314.
The series element may control a reactance, an imaginary number
part of an impedance. For instance, an inductor may be controlled
to have a high reactance, but a capacitor may be controlled to have
a low reactance to thus perform impedance matching. The series
element may be implemented as a lumped constant element between the
first feeding portion 313 and the first feeding extension portion
314. That is, a series capacitor may be disposed on one end of the
first feeding extension portion 314, or a series inductor may be
disposed at part of the first feeding extension portion 314.
In case of comprising a shunt element or a series element, the
antenna device may have a more enhanced performance by changing the
length or shape of the slot.
For instance, in a case where a shunt capacitor is disposed at the
first feeding portion 313 and a series capacitor is disposed at the
first feeding extension portion 314, the length of the slot may be
formed to correspond to about .lamda./8 with respect to a
wavelength of a center frequency of a first frequency band, due to
lowered resistance and reactance. Due to the shortened length of
the slot, the antenna device can be more minimized.
FIG. 7B illustrates that the matching portion 315 is implemented as
a series device. In a case where a first frequency band (low
frequency band) is within the range of about 700.about.900 MHz, a
capacitance may be within the range of 0.7.about.1.4 pF, and an
inductance may be within the range of 5.0.about.11 nH.
The first feeding extension portion 314 may be coupled to one
surface of the third conductive member 312. A dielectric substance
may be disposed between the first feeding extension portion 314 and
the third conductive member 312. As the dielectric substance, FR-3
and CEM-1 may be used. The FR-3 is made of multiple plies of paper
that have been impregnated with an epoxy-resin binder, and the
CEM-1 is a composite material that has a paper core impregnated
with epoxy resin, Alternatively, the dielectric substance may be
implemented as CEM-3, FR-4, FR-5 or GI. The CEM-3 impregnated with
epoxy resin has woven glass cloth surfaces, and a core of non-woven
matte fiberglass. The FR-4 is constructed on multiple plies of
epoxy-resin impregnated woven glass cloth. The FR-5 is constructed
on multiple plies of reinforced epoxy-resin impregnated woven glass
cloth. The GI is constructed on multiple plies of polyimide-resin
impregnated woven glass cloth. Alternatively, the dielectric
substance may be implemented as a printed circuit board (PCB).
As shown in FIG. 7A, the first feeding extension portion 314 may be
coupled to one surface of the third conductive member 312. As shown
in FIG. 5C, the first feeding extension portion 314 may extend from
the first feeding portion 313 so that an impedance can be about 50
ohm, in a case where the slot antenna operates in a second
frequency band.
In a case where a center frequency of a second frequency band is
about 1900 MHz, the first feeding extension portion 314 extending
from the first feeding portion 313 may be formed to have a length
of 8.about.13 mm. Such length of the first feeding extension
portion 314 may be increased or decreased by an electromagnetic
influence from other components of the antenna device. As
aforementioned, an insulator or a dielectric substance may be
disposed between the first feeding extension portion 314 and the
third conductive member 312.
The second antenna device (ANT 2) comprises a second conductive
member 321, a fourth conductive member 322, a second feeding
portion 323, a second feeding extension portion 324, and a second
feeding extension portion 325. The second conductive member 321,
the fourth conductive member 322, the second feeding portion 323,
and the second feeding extension portion 325 of the second antenna
device (ANT 2) have the same configuration as those of the first
antenna device (ANT 1), and thus detailed explanations thereof will
be omitted.
The first conductive member 311 and the second conductive member
321 form part of the appearance of the terminal body. As shown in
FIGS. 7A and 7B, the first conductive member 311 and the second
conductive member 321 may be implemented as a case which forms a
lower part of the mobile terminal. A socket 219 may be formed
between the first conductive member 311 and the second conductive
member 321. As aforementioned, the socket 219 is formed to be
connectable to an external device.
The third conductive member 312 and the fourth conductive member
322, which are parts of the FPCB 242 having a ground, may share the
ground. Alternatively, the third conductive member 312 and the
fourth conductive member 322, which are parts of the FPCB 242, may
have separate grounds. That is, the third conductive member 312 may
be provided with a first ground, and the fourth conductive member
322 may be provided with a second ground.
Alternatively, the third conductive member 312 may be implemented
as an upper part of the FPCB 242, and the fourth conductive member
322 may be implemented as a lower part of the FPCB 242. The third
conductive member 312 and the fourth conductive member 322 may be
provided with separated grounds.
Alternatively, the third conductive member 312 may be implemented
as the FPCB 242, and the fourth conductive member 322 may be
implemented as the frame 241 which supports inside of the terminal
body. In this case, grounds are separated from each other, too.
If the grounds of the first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second
antenna device (ANT 2) are independent from each other, the mobile
terminal can reduce mutual coupling and an envelope correction
coefficient between the first antenna device (main antenna of a
transmitting side or a receiving side) and the second antenna
device (sub antenna of a receiving side of the MIMO or diversity
system).
When the mobile terminal is provided with a plurality of antennas,
a problem, antenna to antenna isolation, may occur. However, in
this embodiment, the first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second
antenna device (ANT 2) are configured to have different radiation
directions. That is, the first antenna device (ANT 1) has a first
radiation direction, whereas the second antenna device (ANT 2) has
a second radiation direction perpendicular to the first radiation
direction.
In the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure, even if a
plurality of antenna devices operate as a MIMO or diversity system,
the mobile terminal can reduce mutual coupling and an envelope
correction coefficient between the first antenna device (main
antenna of a transmitting side or a receiving side) and the second
antenna device (sub antenna of a receiving side of the MIMO or
diversity system).
In a case where a plurality of antenna devices mounted to the
mobile terminal are slot antennas, the plurality of antenna devices
may be implemented in a narrower space than in the conventional
mobile terminal. More specifically, the first antenna device and
the second antenna device, which operate as slot antennas, are
close to each other at a bezel part of the mobile terminal (inner
space of the terminal body, which extends from an outer periphery
of the display unit to the case of the mobile terminal, refer to
FIG. 6). Under such configuration, the bezel part of the terminal
body can be reduced, and thus a smaller and compacter mobile
terminal having a plurality of antenna devices can be
implemented.
Referring to FIG. 7C, even if the first antenna device (ANT 1) and
the second antenna device (ANT 2) simultaneously operate at one
side of the mobile terminal, they do not influence on each other,
and a high antenna efficiency is implemented. Further, each antenna
device which operates as a slot antenna has a high antenna
efficiency in a multi-frequency band.
FIG. 8 is a view illustrating an embodiment of a case coupled to
part of the mobile terminal of FIG. 7A.
A slit extended portion communicated with slots may be formed on a
case which covers the first slot antenna (ANT 1) and the second
slot antenna (ANT 2). As the slit extended portion serves to extend
slots of the slot antennas and to open an upper part of the slots,
antenna efficiency can be more enhanced.
FIGS. 9A and 9B are views illustrating a modification embodiment of
FIG. 7B.
Referring to FIG. 7A, a slit is formed so that a slot is open in a
horizontal direction (X-axis direction) of the terminal body. In
this case, if a user holds the terminal body of which appearance is
formed by the conductive case, the user's palm covers the slit
where main radiation from the antenna device is performed. This may
cause a hand effect which results in decrease of radiation
efficiency of the antenna device.
FIGS. 9A and 9B illustrate a mobile terminal where a slit is formed
in a vertical direction (Y-axis direction) so as to prevent
lowering of antenna efficiency due to a hand effect. As
aforementioned, the slit may be formed to be covered by a
non-conductive member.
FIG. 9B illustrates that conductive members of antenna devices are
defined by forming another slit (SLIT 2) at a lower middle region
of the mobile terminal. More specifically, in FIG. 9B, conductive
members of different antenna devices are separated from each other
for insulation. That is, another silt (SLIT 2) is formed between
conductive members.
FIG. 10 is a view illustrating an example where antenna devices are
mounted to another position of a mobile terminal.
Antenna devices according to embodiments of the present disclosure
may be formed at an upper part of the terminal body. A third
antenna device (ANT 3) and a fourth antenna device (ANT 4) are
formed at an upper part of the terminal body, and a conductive case
202c which constitutes an upper part of the terminal body serves as
conductive members of the antenna devices. Slits are formed at
conductive members 331 and 341 of the third antenna device (ANT 3)
and the fourth antenna device (ANT 4).
In a case where the third antenna device (ANT 3) and the fourth
antenna device (ANT 4) operate as slot antennas, the third antenna
device (ANT 3) and the fourth antenna device (ANT 4) may comprise
conductive members 331, 332, 341 and 342, feeding portions 333 and
343, and feeding extension portions 334 and 344.
The third antenna device (ANT 3) and the fourth antenna device (ANT
4) may operate as the aforementioned slot antennas. However, at
least one of the antenna devices may operate as a folded dipole
type antenna as later explained.
As one member of the antenna device is implemented as the
conductive case, a plurality of antennas may be implemented at a
smaller space inside the mobile terminal. Further, an antenna
performance is not influenced by electric devices disposed near the
antenna devices.
FIGS. 11A and 11B are conceptual views of a mobile terminal having
antenna devices according to a second embodiment of the present
disclosure, and FIG. 11C is a view illustrating a voltage standing
wave ratio (VSWR) according to a frequency of the antenna devices
of FIG. 11A. Especially, FIGS. 11A and 11B illustrate antenna
devices formed at part `A` in the mobile terminal shown in FIG.
3.
Referring to FIG. 11A, a first antenna device (ANT 1) and a second
antenna device (ANT 2) are disposed at one side of a mobile
terminal. The first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second antenna
device (ANT 2) have the same configuration or similar
configurations. Thus, only the first antenna device (ANT 1) will be
explained.
The first antenna device (ANT 1) operates as a folded dipole
antenna, and comprises a first conductive member 411 which forms
part of an appearance of the terminal body, a third conductive
member 412 which forms a first conductive loop together with the
first conductive member 411, a first feeding portion 413, and a
first grounding connector 414.
The first feeding portion 413 may be configured to connect the
circuit board 250 mounted in the terminal body with the first
conductive member 411, and configured to feed a first conductive
member 511. The first feeding portion 413 may be implemented
through a combination of a balun, a phase shifter, a distributor,
an attenuator, an amplifier, etc.
A matching portion 415 for impedance matching may be formed between
the first feeding portion 413 and the third member 412. The
matching portion 415 may be implemented as a series element or a
shunt element. In a case where the matching portion 415 is
implemented as a series element, a reactance, an imaginary number
part of an impedance, may be changed. For instance, an inductor may
be controlled to have a high reactance, but a capacitor may be
controlled to have a low reactance to thus change an impedance in a
first frequency band. On the contrary, in a case where the matching
portion 415 is implemented as a shunt element, a resistance, a real
number part of an impedance, may be changed. For instance, an
inductor may be controlled to have a high resistance, but a
capacitor may be controlled to have a low resistance to thus change
an impedance in a first frequency band.
FIG. 11B illustrates that the matching portion 415 is implemented
as a series device. In a case where a first frequency band (low
frequency band) is within the range of about 700.about.900 MHz, a
capacitance may be within the range of 0.5.about.1.0 pF, and an
inductance may be within the range of 3.0.about.7.0 nH.
If the matching portion 415 is formed between the first feeding
portion 413 and the third member 412, a center frequency of a
frequency band corresponding to a length of a first conductive loop
can be shifted. More specifically, if a center frequency of a
frequency band is shifted to a lower one due to the matching
portion 415, an antenna device having a center frequency of a
corresponding frequency band can be formed by a first conductive
loop of a shorter length, because the frequency is in inverse
proportion to the length of the first conductive loop of the
antenna device.
The length of the first conductive loop corresponds to .lamda./2
with respect to a wavelength of a center frequency of a first
frequency band. However, the length of the first conductive loop
may be shortened due to the matching portion 415 implemented as a
series element, which corresponds to .lamda./4 with respect to a
wavelength of the center frequency of the first frequency band. The
length of the first conductive loop may be increased or decreased
by characteristics of components of the antenna device, or by
influences from peripheral electric devices of the antenna
device.
The second antenna device (ANT 2) has a similar configuration to
the first antenna device (ANT 1). Under such configuration,
A path, which is connected from a second feeding portion 423 to a
second grounding connector 424 via a fourth member 422 and a second
conductive member 421, forms a second conductive loop so that the
second antenna device (ANT 2) can operate as a folded dipole
antenna.
The first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second antenna device (ANT
2) may be disposed at one side of the mobile terminal in an
adjacent manner, and each of them may be connected to a ground of
the circuit board 250 by a grounding connector. The grounds of the
first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second antenna device (ANT 2)
may be separated from each other. That is, the first antenna device
(ANT 1) may be connected to a first ground of the circuit board
250, and the second antenna device (ANT 2) may be connected to a
second ground of the circuit board 250. In a case where the circuit
board 250 is implemented as a multi-layered circuit board, the
first ground and the second ground may be formed on different
layers. If the grounds of the first antenna device (ANT 1) and the
second antenna device (ANT 2) are independent from each other, the
mobile terminal can reduce mutual coupling and an envelope
correction coefficient between the first antenna device and the
second antenna device.
Slits may be formed at one sides of the first conductive member 411
and the second conductive member 421, so that conductive members
can be coupled thereto. In this case, the first conductive member
411 and the second conductive member 421 are defined by the
conductive members. The first conductive member 411 and the second
conductive member 421 have lengths corresponding to a specific
frequency so that the antenna devices can resonate at a specific
frequency.
Referring to FIGS. 11A and 11B, the first conductive member 511 of
the antenna device according to this embodiment is formed at an
upper end or a lower end of the mobile terminal. Main radiation
with respect to radio signals is performed at parts adjacent to the
slits of the first conductive member 411 and the second conductive
member 421. In this embodiment, as a main radiation section is
formed in a lengthwise direction, from a lower end of the mobile
terminal toward outside, lowering of a radiation characteristic due
to a hand effect at a high frequency band can be reduced.
Referring to FIG. 11C, even if the first antenna device (ANT 1) and
the second antenna device (ANT 2) simultaneously operate at one
side of the mobile terminal, they do not influence on each other,
and a high antenna efficiency is implemented. Further, each antenna
device which operates as a slot antenna has a high antenna
efficiency in a multi-frequency band.
FIGS. 12A and 12B are views illustrating a modification embodiment
of FIG. 11B.
Referring to FIG. 12A, a first antenna device (ANT 1) and a second
antenna device (ANT 2) are disposed at one side of the mobile
terminal. The first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second antenna
device (ANT 2) have the same configuration or similar
configurations, and thus only the first antenna device (ANT 1) will
be explained.
The first antenna device (ANT 1) operates as a folded dipole
antenna, and comprises a first conductive member 511, a third
member 512, a first feeding portion 513, and a socket 219 which
constitutes part of a first grounding connector 514.
A matching portion 515 for impedance matching may be formed between
the first feeding portion 513 and the third member 512. The
matching portion 515 may be implemented as a series element or a
shunt element. In a case where the matching portion 515 is
implemented as a series element, a reactance, an imaginary number
part of an impedance, may be changed. For instance, an inductor may
be controlled to have a high reactance, but a capacitor may be
controlled to have a low reactance to thus change an impedance in a
first frequency band. On the contrary, in a case where the matching
portion 415 is implemented as a shunt element, a resistance, a real
number part of an impedance, may be changed. For instance, an
inductor may be controlled to have a high resistance, but a
capacitor may be controlled to have a low resistance to thus change
an impedance in a first frequency band.
If the matching portion 515 is formed between the first feeding
portion 513 and the third member 512, a center frequency of a
frequency band corresponding to a length of a first conductive loop
including the first conductive member 511 and the third conductive
member 512 can be shifted. More specifically, if a center frequency
of a frequency band is shifted to a lower one due to the matching
portion 515, an antenna device corresponding to a center frequency
of a corresponding frequency band can be formed by the first
conductive member 511 and the third member 512 of a shorter length,
because the frequency is in inverse proportion to the length of the
first conductive loop including the first conductive member 511 and
the third member 512.
A transceiving circuit may be formed on one surface of a substrate.
The transceiving circuit is connected to the first feeding portion
513. The transceiving circuit feeds the first conductive member 511
through the first feeding portion 513 and the matching portion 515.
Under such configuration, the transceiving circuit transmits radio
signals, or receives radio signals input to the first conductive
member 511, through the first feeding portion 513 and the matching
portion 515. The transceiving circuit having received the radio
signals performs reception processes such as a frequency conversion
process or a demodulation process.
The first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second antenna device (ANT
2) are connected to grounds of the mobile terminal through the
socket 219. The socket 219 may be formed to pass through the first
conductive member 511. An external device may be inserted into the
socket 219. For instance, an interface device such as a multimedia
interface connector (MMI connector) may be used. Alternatively, an
interface device such as a charging port, a call earphone port, or
a data cable port may be used.
The socket 219 may extend from the first conductive member 511 to
the circuit board 250. The socket 219 contacting the circuit board
250 is ground-connected to the circuit board 250. That is, the
socket 219 ground-connects the first conductive member 511 to the
circuit board 250. Under such configuration, a path, which is from
the first feeding portion 513 to the socket 219 via the first
conductive member 511 and the third member 512, forms a first
conductive loop so that the first antenna device (ANT 1) can
operate as a folded dipole antenna.
The second antenna device (ANT 2) has a similar configuration to
the first antenna device (ANT 1). Under such configuration, a path,
which is from a second feeding portion 523 to the socket 219 via a
fourth member 522 and a second conductive member 521, forms a
second conductive loop so that the second antenna device (ANT 2)
can operate as a folded dipole antenna.
The first antenna device (ANT 1) and the second antenna device (ANT
2) formed at one side of the mobile terminal are connected to
grounds of the circuit board 250 through the socket 219. The socket
219 and the grounds are connected to each other by a first
grounding connector (not shown). The first grounding connector (G)
may be provided with at least two paths of different lengths, and
may be provided with switches corresponding to the respective
paths. The respective paths connect the grounds and the first
conductive member 511 with each other, in different lengths, by
switches thereof. The path serves as an electric passage for
connecting a ground with a radiator, which may include at least one
of a feeding board, a feeding clip and feeding lines. As feeding
lines are formed in different lengths, the paths may have different
lengths.
Non-conductive members may be coupled to two sides of the first
conductive member 511 and the second conductive member 521. In this
case, the first conductive member 511 and the second conductive
member 521 are defined by the non-conductive members. The
respective conductive members have a length corresponding to a
specific frequency so that the antenna devices can resonate at a
specific frequency.
In a case where side cases (CASE 2) of the mobile terminal adjacent
to a conductive case (CASE 1) are formed of conductive members, the
conductive case (CASE 1) and the side cases (CASE 2) are spaced
from each other to form slits (SLIT 1 and SLIT 2). Non-conductive
members are coupled to the slits (SLIT 1 and SLIT 2).
The conductive case (CASE 1) serves as a radiator of the first
antenna device (ANT 2) or the second antenna device (ANT 2). To
this end, the conductive case (CASE 1) may be separated from the
side cases (CASE 2). The separated conductive cases may be
connected to the first conductive member 511 serving as a radiator
of the first antenna device (ANT 1), and the second conductive
member 521 serving as a radiator of the second antenna device (ANT
2).
Referring to FIGS. 12A and 12B, the conductive case (CASE 1) of the
antenna device according to this embodiment is formed at an upper
end or a lower end of the mobile terminal. Radio signals radiate
from two sides of the conductive case (CASE 1). In this embodiment,
as a main radiation section is formed in a lengthwise direction,
from a lower end of the mobile terminal toward outside, lowering of
a radiation characteristic due to a hand effect at a high frequency
band can be reduced.
FIG. 13 is a conceptual view of a mobile terminal according to
another embodiment of the present disclosure, in which one of a
plurality of antennas is implemented as a slot antenna and another
is implemented as a folded dipole antenna. Especially, FIG. 13
illustrates antenna devices formed at part `A` in the mobile
terminal shown in FIG. 3.
The first antenna device (ANT 1) may comprise a first conductive
member 611, a third conductive member 612, a first feeding portion
613, a feeding extension portion 614, and a first matching portion
615. The first conductive member 611 and the third conductive
member 612 may be implemented as conductive members, and define a
slot (S) of the antenna device.
The second antenna device (ANT 2) operates as a folded dipole
antenna, and comprises a second conductive member 621 which forms
part of an appearance of the terminal body, a fourth conductive
member 622 which forms a first conductive loop together with the
second conductive member 621, a second feeding portion 623, a
grounding connector 624, and a second matching portion 625.
The third conductive member 612 and the fourth conductive member
622 may be parts of the FPCB 242. That is, the third conductive
member 612 may be implemented as an upper part of the FPCB 242, and
the fourth conductive member 622 may be implemented as a lower part
of the FPCB 242. Grounds of the third conductive member 612 and the
fourth conductive member 622 may be separated from each other.
Alternatively, the third conductive member 612 may be implemented
as the FPCB 242, and the fourth conductive member 622 may be
implemented as the circuit board 250 of the mobile terminal. Under
such configuration, grounds of the first antenna device (ANT 1) and
the second antenna device (ANT 2) may be separated from each
other.
The foregoing embodiments and advantages are merely exemplary and
are not to be considered as limiting the present disclosure. The
present teachings can be readily applied to other types of
apparatuses. This description is intended to be illustrative, and
not to limit the scope of the claims. Many alternatives,
modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in
the art. The features, structures, methods, and other
characteristics of the exemplary embodiments described herein may
be combined in various ways to obtain additional and/or alternative
exemplary embodiments.
As the present features may be embodied in several forms without
departing from the characteristics thereof, it should also be
understood that the above-described embodiments are not limited by
any of the details of the foregoing description, unless otherwise
specified, but rather should be considered broadly within its scope
as defined in the appended claims, and therefore all changes and
modifications that fall within the metes and bounds of the claims,
or equivalents of such metes and bounds are therefore intended to
be embraced by the appended claims.
* * * * *